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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/23328718">of purell and cheetos</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/selinawrites/pseuds/selinawrites'>selinawrites</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>the life and times of steven grant rogers [3]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Captain America (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Coronavirus, Domestic Bliss, Domestic Fluff, Established Relationship, Feels, Fluff, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Panic, Politics, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, toilet paper hoarding</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-03-26</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-03-26</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-01 05:53:51</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>1,116</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/23328718</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/selinawrites/pseuds/selinawrites</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>There are two types of people during a pandemic: those who stay calm, and those who hoard toilet paper.</p><p>Bucky is the latter.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>James "Bucky" Barnes &amp; Steve Rogers, James "Bucky" Barnes/Steve Rogers</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>the life and times of steven grant rogers [3]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/1441636</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>8</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>55</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>of purell and cheetos</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>these are scary times, folks. hopefully this bit of fluff can lighten your day.</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Steve is watching Brooklyn Nine-Nine and picking at his popcorn when his phone buzzes loudly, disturbing the gentle silence that filled the air.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Darlin’,” Bucky’s voice says over the cellphone, muffled and drowned out by the background noises.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Steve stands up quickly pacing around their apartment. The low whine of their dog’s squeaky toy being chewed on fills the air from somewhere nearby. “Hey, Buck.” He says quickly, chewing on his lip. After the life they’ve lived through, he can’t help but feel slightly worried every time he picks up the phone. “All good?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“How much toilet paper do we have?” Bucky asks insistently.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He rounds a corner and goes to their bathroom. “We still have about ten rolls left. Why?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Thanks,” Bucky says, the line going so quiet on the other end, Steve waits for him to hang up. “I love you.” Bucky says at the last minute.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Steve’s heart melts, as it always does when Bucky says that. “I love you too.” He says earnestly and then hangs up the phone.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He turns off their TV and walks over to the spare room, the one with natural light and all the space in the world for him to paint. He’s painting something bright and colourful which is bound to be Bucky’s face when he hears the door unlock and footsteps enter their apartment. He’s gotten familiar with Bucky’s gait and walking pace that he doesn’t need to flee to the nearest concealed firearm.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He wipes his hands of oil paint and turns off the vinyl record, walking over to meet Bucky.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Hey-” Steve begins, but any words in his mouth die when he looks at Bucky, hands over hips, staring at large cardboard boxes. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I’ve got ten packs of toilet paper and fifteen N-95 masks - even though we could always just use the ones we use in battle, I suppose. I also got two gallons of purell, five packages of Lysol wipes, and a family-sized pack of Cheetos.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“How did you carry all those upstairs by yourself?” Steve asks, bewildered.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Bucky furrows his eyebrow. “I came home with apocalypse-prep levels of groceries and </span>
  <em>
    <span>that’s </span>
  </em>
  <span>what you’re asking?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We watched the news this morning, Buck,” Steve says with a soft eyeroll. “I know what the coronavirus is.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Really?” Bucky replied. “I thought you were too busy sucking my di-”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Steve raises a hand and effectively cuts him off. “That’s enough.” He says quickly. Bucky flashes him a shit-eating grin. “Also, we don’t have space for all these things! Where are we going to put them?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“We can just put it all in the spare room!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I paint in there!" Steve exclaims.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Well,” Bucky says, spreading his arms out and looking around wildly. “I don’t want to die in </span>
  <em>
    <span>here</span>
  </em>
  <span>!” He replies.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Steve scoffs, as he helps Bucky unload the groceries and bring them into the spare room. “You won’t die from that.” He says, hands full of purell bottles. “We’re both young and healthy. Isn’t the virus only killing the elderly and those who were already sick?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You never know! You could be walking down the street and them - bam! Some Instagram </span>
  <em>
    <span>influencer</span>
  </em>
  <span>,” He says, using the word </span>
  <em>
    <span>influencer </span>
  </em>
  <span>liberally, “who didn’t want to self-quarantine coughs on you. And that’s the end of Bucky Barnes.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Steve rolls his eyes. “That’s not gonna happen. We’re two super soldiers. I think we may just be the two most immune people on the planet. When was the last time you got sick?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Okay, what about supplies? Just because we won’t get sick doesn’t mean we won’t starve to death. Or run out of toilet paper.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“So we’re going to survive off of toilet paper and Cheetos?” Steve says with a warm grin.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Seriously!” Bucky whines.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Steve shakes his head, depositing the last of the toilet paper in the spare room and giving Bucky a quick peck on the cheek. “The supply chain is fine. There won’t be a shortage of anything any time soon.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“But what if we run out of </span>
  <em>
    <span>toilet paper</span>
  </em>
  <span>, Stevie? Toilet paper!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Didn’t you grow up in the depression?” Steve snipes back with a smile, as they make their way into the kitchen. Bucky’s fingers fiddle with the espresso machine as he makes them both a cup of coffee.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Steve wraps his hands around Bucky’s waist as the smell of coffee fills the air. He rests his head in the crook of Bucky’s neck. “Darlin’, we’ll be fine. Didn’t you survive in a damp cell for the better half of seventy years too?” He said with a tease.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Bucky didn’t usually like talking about his past with HYDRA. But on days like this, with the coffee fresh and the sunlight bright and beautiful, even the grim things seem alright in the daytime. “I survived jumping out of a plane. I survived World War II. I survived aliens coming to earth.” He says, spinning around in Steve’s grasp so they were face to face, Bucky’s back pressed up against their granite counters.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I even survived the terror of thinking you were gonna live with Peggy Carter in the fifties,” Bucky said with a pout. Steve let out a low chuckle and kissed Bucky right below his eye. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“There’s nothing to worry about.” Steve reassured, giving Bucky another quick kiss.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Bucky’s eyes widen. “I don’t know how to live through a pandemic,” He whined. “Last time there was a global outbreak, we were two years old.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Steve let out a spurt of laughter, shaking his head wryly. He held Bucky close to him and held him in his arms. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>After a long lapse of time, Bucky exhaled slowly. “Imagine if that’s how I kick it? Some punk-ass virus.” He said with an eyeroll.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Steve laughed again, full and genuine. “Everything will work out fine in the end. I promise.” He said reassuringly.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“But what about the people losing their jobs over this? Or people who are bein’ treated racist as hell? Or kids in bad homes? God, Stevie. It feels like the end of the world all over again.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Steve brushed away a stray hair from Bucky’s face. “You worry too much, darlin’.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I have a right to worry! Under </span>
  <em>
    <span>this </span>
  </em>
  <span>presidency?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Steve stared into Bucky’s eyes with a warm smile. “Hey. Take it one day at a time, alright?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Bucky held tighter to Steve and kissed him slowly. When he pulled away, he rested his head on Steve’s shoulder, the two of them swaying back and forth in the silence.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“You know, we’re supposed to be six feet apart. They’re calling it social distancing.” Bucky says voice muffled from within the soft fabric of Steve’s sweater.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Steve kisses Bucky on the head. “Fuck social distancing.”</span>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>thanks for reading! remember, only wear n95 masks, use 60%+ alcohol, don't be like steve and stay 6 feet apart, and don't hoard toilet paper and other goods because it deprives others of necessities :)</p></blockquote></div></div>
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